It’s been 2 weeks since the 2026 season officially began. I believe that many fans have already watched several games so far. I watched several games as well. In particular, I didn’t miss the opening day.
When I watched the first game of the Dodgers, on the mound, Yoshinobu Yamamoto made the start for the Dodgers. While seeing Yamamoto on the mound, I was just thinking about the Dodgers’ lineup on opening day. Dave Roberts was named the manager of the Dodgers in November 2015. The first game as a skipper was on the 2016 Opening Day. Over 10 years, there must be a lot of changes in the Dodgers lineup on Opening Day. To see the differences, I decided to check on the MLB website.
Back in 2016, the Dodgers played the first game of the regular season in San Diego. Clayton Kershaw took the mound against the Padres. Additionally, pitchers had to bat that time, so Kershaw was hitting 9th. In the lineup, Chase Utley hit the leadoff spot and he was playing second base. Moreover, Corey Seager was playing shortstop and hitting second. Seager made his MLB debut in 2015. In 2016, he made his first opening day appearance.
In the middle of the lineup, there were Justin Turner, Adrian Gonzalez, Yasiel Puig and Carl Crawford. Turner played at third base. Adrian Gonzalez was playing at first base. Yasiel Puig was in right field. Furthermore, Carl Crawford was the left fielder and he was hitting 6th. Meanwhile, Joc Pederson was the center fielder and he batted 7th. A.J. Ellis was hitting 8th and he was behind the plate.
This year, Shohei Ohtani was the leadoff hitter. Kyle Tucker, who just signed with the Dodgers in January, played right field and hit 2nd. Mookie Betts was hitting 3rd and he played shortstop. Freddie Freeman hit 4th and he played at first base. Will Smith was behind the plate and he hit 5th. Third baseman Max Muncy was batting 6th.
Finally, Teoscar Hernandez was hitting 7th and he played left field. The center fielder was Andy Pages and he was batting 8th. Miguel Rojas, who crushed a home run in game 7 of the 2025 World Series, was playing at second base and batting 9th.
Looking at the lineups between the 2016 Opening Day and the 2026 Opening Day, things have become so different. Firstly, pitchers don’t have to hit anymore. But interestingly, Kershaw collected a hit on the 2016 Opening Day. Secondly, there was a player who was eligible for rookie of the year in the lineup in 2016. That player was Corey Seager and in the end, he won the 2016 NL Rookie of the Year award. In 2026, you don’t see any rookie players in the Dodgers starting lineup on the opening day. Thirdly, in 2016, Clayton Kershaw was the only MVP award winner in the lineup. In the 2026 lineup, the Dodgers are loaded with MVP talents. There are Shohei Ohtani, Mookie Betts and Freddie Freeman. Indeed, so many things have changed over 10 years. Baseball has changed and the lineup construction has been different.
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